My second real draft — from the 4 spot

Well, everything didn’t go my way in Thursday night’s draft either, but I feel good about the results nevertheless.

Here’s the roster I assembled in my 10-man PPR league starting with the 4th overall selection:

Pick 1.4: Melvin Gordon, RB, Chargers. I signaled my preference for Gordon in my Perfect Draft column, and I followed through accordingly. I continue to believe that waiting on your RB1 until the 2nd round is a very risky proposition, unless…

Pick 2.7: Brandin Cooks, WR, Patriots. As I read The Dallas Morning News and other accounts of the Zeke Elliott case, I wonder if I made a really bad decision not to take Zeke here. Because, of course, he was snatched up before I had a shot with my 3rd pick (where I definitely would have pulled the trigger). No doubt Cooks is a very solid pick with elite potential, but teaming Zeke with Gordon (or taking Julio first and Zeke second) would be pretty doggone powerful if the Cowboys RB is able to escape punishment. (Important side note: By all accounts, Zeke needs a real slap in the face, and a six-game suspension for his alleged pattern of misbehavior seems more than fair. My comments above are strictly fantasy-based.)

Pick 3.4: Marshawn Lynch, RB, Raiders. Still love this pick, but I worry that I reached a bit too much. According to some ESPN mocks I did prior to our draft, the Beast fell to the 4th round. But the risk was too high, in my opinion, that I would get stuck with a RB2 that wasn’t worthy of the position if I waited another round.

Pick 4.7: Travis Kelce, TE, Chiefs. I went off my board here because I felt Kelce provided exceptional value. I also haven’t forgotten the sting of Kelce’s extraordinary performance in Week 16 last season, which cost me a championship. I would have taken Greg Olsen with my 5th pick otherwise, but I felt comfortable waiting on Davante Adams in the next round and passing on a WR here.

Pick 5.4: Joe Mixon, RB, Bengals. To my surprise, Adams was taken at 5.2, and Jamison Crowder right after that. There go the two WRs I was targeting in this round. Kareem Hunt was another guy I thought might drop, but he disappeared as well. I was not expecting to draft Mixon, but I felt he offered the most value, and upside, among those on the board.

Pick 6.7: Drew Brees, QB, Falcons. The run on QBs was on, with Rodgers, Brady, Dak (yes, we have a homer among us) and Ryan all gone. Despite my on-going worries at the WR position, I decided it was more important to snare an elite QB than a less-than-exciting WR like Brandon Marshall or Tyreek Hill.

Pick 7.4: Martavis Bryant, WR, Steelers. So easy to overlook, and not officially reinstated at the time I drafted him, I decided to swing for the fences with a wideout with huge upside (assuming he can stay out of trouble). When the guy picking right before me took C.J. Anderson here (reinforcing the perils of posting my Perfect Draft prior to my own drafts), it made the Bryant call easier.

Pick 8.7: Tyrell Williams, WR, Chargers. Suddenly I feel much better about my WR corps. If all goes as planned, Cooks, Bryant and Williams will all be Top 20 WRs, and two of those could easily sneak into the Top 10 ranks. That said, I essentially just forfeited Week 9 — when my RB1 and top 3 WRs are all on bye; which, frankly, isn’t a terrible strategy, if they all play up to their expectations in the other weeks.

Pick 9.4: Tevin Coleman, RB, Falcons. This pick offered two benefits: It gave me solid RB depth, with the possible upside of a RB1 should his running mate go down, and it really irritated my buddy who was planning to lock in his first pick’s handcuff with his next pick.

Pick 10.7: Derek Carr, QB, Raiders. I was the first player to take a backup QB, but 3 other guys were still QB-less. I would have been happy had I passed on Brees earlier and taken Carr here, so I couldn’t pass up the value he represents. Plus, I knew at least one of those QB-challenged guys was banking on Carr being their QB1. The moans I heard after making the selection confirmed that.

Pick 11.4: Darren Sproles, RB, Eagles. I continue to believe Sproles will be the most valuable Philly RB in PPR leagues. Just how valuable that proves to be is another story.

Pick 12.7: Broncos defense/special teams. I always prefer to start the run on a position, rather than playing catchup. As predicted, once I broke the ice, several others started grabbing lesser defenses.

Pick 13.4: Corey Davis, WR, Titans. Okay, the rookie has 8 weeks to figure out the NFL and get in sync with Mariota, because he’s likely to be my WR1 in Week 9.

Pick 14.7: Taylor Gabriel, WR, Falcons. I most likely took him earlier than I needed to, but I thought I could safely wait another round or two to grab Austin Hooper as my backup TE. Alas, the rat b***stard that knew my plan and drafted before me took him.

Pick 15.4. Mason Crosby, K, Packers. Thanks to the adult beverages I was consuming, I thought we were in the 16th round, and I had a feeling the good kickers would be gone by the time the draft got back to me. I was right about that last part, but by taking Crosby, I whiffed on the chance to grab Jacquizz Rodgers. My bad.

Pick 16.7: Sterling Shepard, WR, Giants. Not the least bit happy with this pick. Unless he has a great Week 1 or 2, he’ll be the first to go when I hit the free-agent pool.

Pick 17.4: D’Onta Foreman, RB, Texans. I think he has a legit shot at claiming the lead RB role in Houston by mid-season. But will I have the patience to wait? We’ll see.